RoboCuomo for rent control extension, expansion

The state Democratic Committee released the script of a robocall from Gov. Andrew Cuomo that will be going out this week in support of the extension and expansion of rent control protections, which expire on June 15 — a week from tomorrow. The script hews close to Cuomo’s recent video message on the same issue, which was similarly absent of specific proposals for how the regulations should be expanded.

Here’s the script; we’ve asked the committee for audio and more details:

Hello. Before I was Gov. Cuomo, I was Secretary Cuomo. I worked as Secretary of Housing and Urban Development in the Clinton administration and was the head of housing for our nation. There’s no doubt that affordable housing is the foundation of strong communities. But for too many New Yorkers, affordable housing is just out of reach. More than 1 million people in our state are protected by New York’s rent regulation program. However, this program is set to expire next week on June 15th. That would be a crisis for our state. But we need to do more than extend our rent laws we need to strengthen them. Under current standards another 130,000 apartments could be removed from rent regulation in the next few years. Having affordable housing works for all New Yorkers – a strong middle class is the heart of our state. As New Yorkers we need to work together to protect the quality of life for all our people. Please contact your state legislators and urge them to extend and strengthen our state’s rent laws. Thank you.